Short Interest in Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) Expands By 28.4%

Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 5,960,000 shares, a growth of 28.4% from the December 15th total of 4,640,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 857,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 6.9 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, B. Riley raised shares of Ellington Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $13.58.

Ellington Financial Trading Up 0.6 %

EFC traded up $0.08 on Friday, hitting $12.56. 722,241 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 954,451. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.87, a quick ratio of 37.04 and a current ratio of 37.04. Ellington Financial has a 12 month low of $10.88 and a 12 month high of $13.46. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $12.27 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $12.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.14 billion, a PE ratio of 9.58 and a beta of 1.97.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The financial services provider reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.04. Ellington Financial had a net margin of 106.40% and a return on equity of 10.26%. The firm had revenue of $33.63 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $37.95 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.33 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Ellington Financial will post 1.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Ellington Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 12.43%. Ellington Financial’s payout ratio is presently 119.08%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. McIlrath & Eck LLC bought a new position in shares of Ellington Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at $62,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in Ellington Financial in the third quarter valued at about $68,000. Members Trust Co purchased a new position in Ellington Financial in the third quarter worth about $129,000. Atom Investors LP bought a new stake in shares of Ellington Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at about $130,000. Finally, Creative Planning purchased a new stake in shares of Ellington Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at about $141,000. 55.62% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Ellington Financial

Ellington Financial Inc, through its subsidiary, Ellington Financial Operating Partnership LLC, acquires and manages mortgage-related, consumer-related, corporate-related, and other financial assets in the United States. The company acquires and manages residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) backed by prime jumbo, Alt-A, manufactured housing, and subprime mortgage; RMBS for which the principal and interest payments are guaranteed by the U.S.